File photo by Steve Muscatello Minnesota Valley Lutheran’s Maddie Pearson looks to pass the ball during a recent game at MVL.

NEW ULM — Cedar Mountain/Comfrey’s increased intensity in the second half led to a 54-39 victory over Minnesota Valley Lutheran in Tomahawk Conference girls’ basketball action on Friday night.

The Cougars (6-3, 2-3) have been playing without guards Hailey Pidde and Jordan Kevelin, who both suffered season-ending ACL injuries. That hasn’t let the team get off track, though, as they picked up their third win in a row on Friday.

Abby Jemmings and Taylor Rose have both handled things well so far and have played a key role in the team’s success. Rose had 11 points, five assists, five rebounds and five steals on Friday, while Rose led the team with in scoring with 26 points.

Rose also added six boards.

“Abby’s our floor leader,” CM/C coach Mike Kelly said after the win. “She does all the talking on the floor and get’s us all set up. She just plays very well. And we were able to get the ball to Taylor tonight and Taylor got hot, so that makes a big difference. I just thought they played very well together — set a lot of good screens and just played well.”

CM/C took an early lead in the first half after a bounce pass from Jemmings led to a 3-pointer by Rose. Rose then drove in moments later and got a bank shot to fall for an 8-3 Cougar lead.

With less than 10 minutes to go in the half, Maddie Spurgin sank a wide-open 3 from the top of the key to give MVL an 11-10 lead. Rose, however, answered back right away with a 3 of her own to give CM/C the lead back, 13-11.

A 3 by Haley Birkholz tied things up at 19-19 with more than four minutes left in the first half.

Back-to-back buckets by Abby Nelson and Maddie Pearson put the Chargers up 25-21, but CM/C ended the half with a 26-25 lead after a 3 by Jemmings.

The Cougars had plenty of rebounds and second-chance opportunities in the first half, and they continued to pile up even more rebounds in the second half.

“We rebounded very well,” Kelly said. “We needed to do that, and we played really good team basketball tonight. They missed a few easier ones, but they didn’t hang their heads and they kept playing hard.”

After swapping a bucket to begin the second half, a Jemmings dish to Erica Bock for an and-one put the Cougars ahead 31-27. A pass down court from Jemmings to Rose led to a bucket inside and a 10-point lead, 41-31, with less than 10 minutes left in the game.

Any time MVL seemed to get any momentum going in the second half, though, CM/C created a turnover or answered back.

MVL coach Rollin Timm said that his squad was just outplayed by CM/C and that his team began to force things in the second half.

“We didn’t relax and play,” Timm said. “We were forcing it, making some bad decisions because they were playing good defense. They’re a good defensive team.”

Lexi Toll also added nine rebounds and 4 points for CM/C, while Bock added 5 points.

The Chargers were led by Abby Nelson with 14 points, Pearson with 6 points, and Lauren Paulsen, Emma Nelson and Birkholz with 5 points each. Emma Nelson also had 12 rebounds, while Spurgin had six boards and three steals.

The Chargers (5-6, 2-3) host New Ulm Cathedral at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, while the Cougars travel to Hector to play Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.